Traffic on the Pak-Afghan border has increased significantly since the recent political change in Afghanistan. Among these are the many Hazara families moving from Afghanistan to Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province.
Shukria and her family crossed the Pak-Afghan border from Afghanistan’s Malistan province and came to Hazara Town in Quetta. According to Shukria, two of her family members were killed by the Taliban. Due to this, she was forced to flee in the darkness of the night, and reached Pakistan. Here she will rent a house from a Hazara family for 5,000 Pakistani rupees. Shukria, with four other family members, including her two brothers, now want to find work here so that they can take up permanent residence in this country.
Fatima, who hails from Ghazni, Afghanistan, has moved to Quetta with her family as well. Her husband works in Iran while she will now try to make a living by sewing clothes herself as it is no longer possible for her to return to Afghanistan.
An Afghan national Karim says that the closure of business activities after the Taliban took over has led to a sharp rise in poverty, forcing him to return to Pakistan.
29-year-old Afghan national Sibghat Ullah crossed the border with his 6 family members at the Chaman border. Having left everything behind, he worries that the situation in Afghanistan may yet worsen. Despite assurances from the Taliban, he says he still has fear in his heart. With his assessment of the situation at home ever more bleak, he and his family are now moving in temporarily with relatives living in Pakistan’s border area.
According to local trader Haji Rozi Khan, one has to go through seven check posts from Kandahar province in Afghanistan to the Pakistani border. Due to extortion at check posts on the Afghan side, traders had to pay up to 100,000 in the Afghan currency. These amounts no longer have to be paid on the Afghan side. However, they say, they still have to pay extortion money at Pakistani check posts
Sibghat was a shopkeeper in Kandahar. “I am not sure what our future will be, but for now, I want my family to be safe,” he says, as he looks around to find his cousin, who was supposed to welcome him at the border.
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“Afghan citizens who come to Pakistan from Afghanistan through the Friendship Border using an Afghan document called ‘tazkira’ are only allowed to come within the boundaries of Chaman and Qila Abdullah, as per the decision made in the past by the Pakistani officials with former Afghan border officials,” Deputy Commissioner Chaman Jumma Dad Tareen says. Authorities further say that Afghan citizens who try to leave these areas are to be arrested from various check posts between Quetta and Chaman, and will be sent back to Afghanistan.
“No instructions have been received from the provincial government regarding Afghan refugees,” Commissioner Quetta Division says.
“The Federal Ministry of Border Affairs is responsible for IDPs,” notes provincial Interior Minister Mir Zia ullah Langau. He also adds that no proper plan has been received from the federal government. “Pakistan’s peace is linked to peace in Afghanistan,” continues the minister. He takes the view that it is the right of the Afghan people to choose their government. “We hope that the land of Afghanistan will no longer be used against Pakistan,” he says. The minister insists that India has been involved in unrest in Pakistan by using Afghan territory. He concludes on a hopeful note: “The Taliban statement on non-use of Afghan territory against Pakistan is welcomed.”
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Locals involved in trade say that the import of Afghan fruit into Pakistan is likely to increase by 50% after the Taliban take-over. According to local trader Haji Rozi Khan, one has to go through seven check posts from Kandahar province in Afghanistan to the Pakistani border.
Due to extortion at check posts on the Afghan side, traders had to pay up to 100,000 in the Afghan currency. These amounts no longer have to be paid on the Afghan side. However, they say, they still have to pay extortion money at Pakistani check posts.
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Abdullah Khan, a resident of Chaman, often visits the Pak-Afghan border. He says that there is a situation of tension at the Chaman border at the moment, and thousands of people are coming to the Pakistani side of the border. “It is difficult to get a car seat even for Rs 2,000.”
He says that some illegal immigrants are caught while others manage to escape. “The Bab-e-Dosti [Friendship Gate] is over-occupied, and crowds at the border are so large that you have to cover a distance of 25 minutes from the border by foot, only after which can you can reach your transport,” he explains. “Vehicles are being brought in full of people, and tripe prices are charged for these trips.”
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The influx of refugees is only expected to grow.
“More than 300,000 refugees are already housed in ten Afghan refugee camps in Balochistan,” UNHCR spokesperson Humera Karim says. “New refugees have not yet arrived in these camps in the province.”
